angel in red
by Lt-Riza-Humphrey
Summary: how bout you read to find out
1. Chapter 1 the anggel in red

Chapter 1- the angel in red

Riza sat at her desk idly. This was rare for her…she never just sat there. It wasn't that she didn't have anything to do…far from it. She actually had quite a lot to do, but for some reason she couldn't concentrate for nothing. She felt restless. She lifted her eyes from her work and studied her comrades. Storm had just left…something about needing a smoke break…Riza sneered at the thought, since when did he need to leave for a smoke break? Most likely he just wanted an excuse to walk by the new secretary. Michaels was also gone…he most presumably went to the bathroom. Bryce had been called away to help the new secretary with her typewriter…Riza smiled, even if Storm had tried to strike up a conversation with the new girl, she would probably brush him off while she was trying to get her typewriter fixed. Riza's eyes roamed around the room. The only person left other than herself was Colonel Hunter. She silently studied his form. His hair fell in his eyes as he hunched diligently over his paperwork. She raised an eyebrow. 'Did we switch bodies today? He's usually the one that can't seem to stay on his work.' The feeling of restlessness washed back over her, and she looked back at the clock- 6:30…she still had a half hour left. She looked back at the orderly papers stacked on her desk. Irritated she let out a loud sigh.

"Something wrong Humphrey?" Hunter asked, not looking up from his work.

The sound of his voice snapped her to attention, "No, sir." She replied rapidly.

There was something in her voice that made him look up at her. He studied her features. Her brow was furrowed and her arms were crossed…as if she was having a staring contest with her paper work. It really wasn't like her…usually by now she was already done with her work and was trying to get him to finish his.

He raised his eyebrow at her response, "Are you sure?"

NO! She wanted to scream. I'm not fine, everything isn't okay! She felt like something was just trying to scratch its way out of her head. She was sick and tired of paperwork, she was tired of being so quiet all the time, of being a perfect little soldier, she was tired of being his Nanny, and most of all she was tired of being unappreciated and unnoticed. Plain and simple, she was tired of the monotony…she needed to break out. She just wanted to be someone else for a while…

She desperately tried to shake the feelings out of her head as she responded, "No sir, everything's fine. Please, continue with your work."

Her response didn't convince him, but he knew Humphrey well, if she didn't want to tell you something, she wouldn't tell you. Dejectedly, Hunter lowered his head and continued with his paperwork.

The day finished off as quietly as it'd started and Riza began her walk home. She still felt restless, as if insects were making her skin crawl. She tried to suppress the feeling…but she knew it wouldn't last that long, somehow something needed to happen…she needed to do something. And bottling up these feelings wasn't going to help.

She took a left down Kingston Street. She was only a block away from her apartment. As she walked by The goldfish, the local tavern, a poster caught her eye.

Amateur Hour

10-11 pm

TONIGHT

Walk-Ins Welcome

…maybe she wouldn't have to bottle up these emotions after all. The more she thought about it the more she liked the idea. She only was to do something…be someone else for a little while—what better way?

"Sorry Hunter, I can't tonight." Mayhal said to his longtime friend over the phone. "No, I promised Gabriella that I'd take her out tonight…yes…all right, see you later." He finished into the telephone receiver.

Hughes was excited to spend a night out with his wife, but he wasn't too crazy about where she was making him go. She wanted to take him to the ballet, definitely not his idea of a great evening out, but it's where she wanted to go and he loved her more than his dislike for the ballet.

Back at Riza's apartment

Riza was busy looking for something to wear. She pulled a neon blue dress out of her closet, "No." she said monotone as she put it back. She pulled out a purple dress, "No…" she replied as she quickly put it back.

She then pulled out one of the slinkiest dresses she owned. It was a little black number that was V-necked so sharply down the point of the "v" ended at her naval. She sighed loudly, "No!" Riza crammed the outfit back into the closet.

She turned around blindly and flopped onto the bed. The ceiling fan spun around and around as she stared.

"Sayate, I have nothing to wear." She said as she sat up to stare at her puppy. He titled his head and gave her an inquisitive look. Suddenly it came to her. Riza jumped up from the bed like a lightning bolt and ran down the hall.

"Please still be there." She said to no one in particular. The door on the left was a hall closet and she ripped the door open as her eyes rapidly skimmed the closet's contents. The purple hat box at the top of the closet held what she was looking for. Riza had to jump a little to reach it, because she was so short even if she didn't want to admit it, but it was worth it, she hoped it still fit…

The music of "The Nutcracker" flowed throughout the theater as the graceful dancers made their way on stage. Gabby sat eagerly on the edge of her seat. Hugh slouched in his chair. His bow tie was choking him 'I must really love her a lot to wear this monkey suit.' He thought as he glanced in his wife's direction. His face softened as he watched her stare at the stage with child-like amazement. He did love her, more than life itself…for everything she was, and for everything she wasn't. She wasn't perfect, but it was her flaws that attracted him—she was so perfectly imperfect, it fascinated him. He continued to stare at her and while it seemed only moments to him, suddenly the show was over and he'd been staring at her for almost two hours. He hadn't even noticed the time.

The two walked out of the theater and were met with a blast of cold air. Gabby shivered in the wind. "Honey?" she said. Mayhal could hear it in her voice, she was going to ask for something.

"…sweetie?" she continued. "I'm a little cold…and I thought maybe it'd be nice to get a cup of coffee.."

Mayhal sighed, "But Gabby all the coffee shops are closed…and besides it's just the wind that's making you a little chilly. You can have my jacket and-"

"Hugh…please? I'm sure there's someplace still open…"

He glanced at his watch—10:30, "Well the only place I can think of is The goldfish…but that's not really—"

"Great let's go!" she interrupted. He wanted to tell her 'no', but one look at her and he just couldn't. He smiled slightly and offered her his arm. Together they marched off in the direction of The goldfish.

Riza stood backstage nervously. Butterflies pressed against the walls of her stomach. For the first time in weeks she was actually enjoying herself, even though she was a little nervous. She was terrified, but it felt good. Not only did she feel good, but she looked good. She looked at herself in the full length mirror backstage. Her long dirty blonde hair fell over her shoulders; it was nice to finally get it out of that clip for once even if I preferred it like that.

She had been surprised the dress she was wearing still fit. She'd had it for years and she'd only worn it once. The dress was strapless and red. It was short and it barely reached mid-thigh. The bottom of the dress had two frills at the bottom, making the bottom of the dress flounce out a bit. She remembered the first time she'd worn it, it was back during her last year of school. A boy she knew wanted to impress a girl he liked by learning the salsa, but he didn't have a partner to learn it with. After about two days of begging Riza, she finally gave in…though she almost pulled out of the deal when she found out she was going to have to wear a dress.. Eventually she'd given in to that too, but on the condition that he bought the dress. Ironically, he'd done a pretty good job at picking it out and Riza looked fabulous. 'It still looks good 6 years later.' She was jarred out of her reverie by a hand on her bare shoulder.

"Ma'am?" the stagehand said, "You're on in ten minutes."

She gave him a silent nod. She was pleased that she hadn't given the people her name-she didn't want any of this getting back to the base, she'd never live it down. At first the people wouldn't allow her to go on without a name, but in the end they gave in to her demands…she wasn't the easiest person to argue with she was pretty stubborn.

10:45, they were going to catch the end of amateur night. Mayhal sighed inwardly, he hated amateur night. It was usually filled with karaoke singers and bad magic acts. Out of the whole night they usually only ended up with one decent singer.

"Oh look Hugh! It's amateur night! Let's go watch!" Gabby said excitedly.

'Apparently she's never suffered through amateur night before!' he was about to tell her no, but when he looked into those big green eyes he just didn't have the heart. He put on a brave face and a smile and said, "Why not?" 'Besides, it's only 15 minutes.'

The couple walked inside and Gabby sat at a floor table close to the stage. Hugh waved a waiter over and ordered two coffees. One act was just finishing. He had apparently been a magician. He wasn't very organized because as he was trying to go off stage several rabbits jumped out of his pants leg and started to hop toward the opposite side of the stage.

Thankfully on of the stage hands caught the stray rabbits and helped the man off with the rest of his things. Finally the manager of the club came out. He was a short round man with a bald head and many rings on his left hand. He conducted the stage as if he was a circus ringleader. 'I suppose you'd have to be a ringleader to master a circus like amateur night!' Hugh thought to himself.

"All right ladies and gents! Give this pretty little lady a hand; it's her first time coming out here on amateur night. I hear she's got a sweet little number she wants to sing to you, so give this little lady a hand!" The manager said.

The audience clapped weakly and the lights went out. When they came back up a beautiful blonde in a short red dress stood on stage holding a microphone in her hands. Hugh had to blink twice because he couldn't believe what he was seeing…Riza Humphrey was standing on stage and she actually looked like she was going to sing!

The lights on the stage were bright. So bright in fact the audience was completely shadowed from Riza's view…it was so dark in the audience that Riza couldn't even tell if there was anyone in the house. An empty room. Suddenly any butterflies she had were gone. The music began to play and all traces of the old, dull Riza melted away and a brand new woman exposed herself.

"do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just see you tonight

It's time like these" her voice resounded in the room absorbing the small audience into her own little world. Mayhal and his wife sat spellbound. 'Who knew Humphrey had it in her!' Mayhal thought to himself, 'David wouldn't believe this!'

"when I think of you and wonder

If you ever think of me

Cause everything's so wrong

And I don't belong living in

Your precious memories

Cause I need you

And I miss you

Now I wonder

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just see you tonight

And I, I don't want to let you know

I,I drown in your memory" As Riza sang it she couldn't help but think of David. 'He'd never believe this…he'd never let me live it down!'

"I,I don't want to let this go

I,I don't…..

Making my way downtown

Walking fast faces pass

And I'm homebound

Staring blankly ahead

Just making my way

Making my way

Through the crowd

And I still need you

And I still miss you

And now I wonder…..

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass us by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just see you…

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just see you

If I could just hold you

Tonight. The lights dimmed and she disappeared behind the curtain.

When the lights came up Riza seemed to have disappeared as if she'd never been there. For a moment Mayhal seriously wondered if the whole thing had been some sort of elaborate dream. He was stunned speechless. Clapping suddenly filled the room as the audience came out of their bewildered spell and jumped to their feet.

"Oh Hugh! That was wonderful! I haven't heard a rendition of 'a thousand miles' that good in years!" Gabby said to her husband who was still stunned looking at the stage. When he didn't respond at first she said, "Darling? Are you all right? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Gabriella, did that woman look familiar to you?" he asked never taking his eyes from the stage. He was starting to doubt it'd really been Riza and maybe this new woman had just looked like David's subordinate.

"…now that you mention it, she did look a lot like that Lieutenant that works for David. You know, I wouldn't be surprised if that was her."

"At that Mayhal jumped up, "Where are you going?" his wife asked.

"I want to see if that really was Lt. Humphrey." He said as he walked toward the stage door.

"Well if it is her, tell her I thought she did a wonderful job!" Gabby called after him.

Riza smiled at her reflection in a mirror encircled in light bulbs. She felt wonderful. 'I can't believe they clapped!' she thought to herself. Protecting Hunter was a thankless and unnoticed job. It felt nice to finally be appreciated for something. 'Maybe I should be someone else more often.' She mused.

"You have a beautiful voice." Someone said behind her.

Riza knew who it was before she even turned around. She turned to face him quickly, praying inwardly that Mayhal really wasn't there.

He was there though, in the flesh…and complimenting her at that.

"I thought that was you on stage," he said. "My wife told me to tell you that you did a wonderful job. Personally I'm inclined to agree with her—you know my wife has good taste." He said with a wink, "After all, she chose yours truly here."

Riza was still so stunned she could barely speak, " How d-did you-"

"Oh, Gabriella wanted a cup of coffee, and you happened to walk on stage."

"I-I" she started, desperately trying to find the words. She was never one to stutter, but the entire situation was just too overwhelming. If he told anyone, no one would ever take her seriously again. The office would be like hell, people would hum little tunes under their breath and Hunter—'Oh God! Hunter!' "Please don't tell the Colonel!"

"Oh why not? You did amazing. I'm sure everyone would love to see it!"

"No! Please don't tell anyone! I'd never live it down." She pleaded, feeling sick at the thought that he'd tell anyone.

Mayhal attempted to calm her, "Don't worry Lieutenant, I won't say a word…but I was wondering if you could do me a favor…"

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, "What sort of favor?"

"Well you see, Gabriella was very impressed with your abilities, and I have yet to get her an anniversary gift, and seeing as how 'a thousand miles' is one of her favorite songs, I was wondering if you'd sing at our anniversary party…" he said as he looked at her hopefully.

Riza thought about it for a moment, she'd already heard about the Lieutenant Colonel's anniversary party, pretty much everyone had—Hunter, of course received an invitation.

"No." she replied flatly.

"Why?" he ask desperately.

"I won't make a fool out of myself in front of Hunter or the team."

"Oh yes, I'd forgotten he was coming…"

"Miss? Miss?" The little round manager called to her as he rushed around the corner.

"What do you need?" she asked him curtly. This entire business was becoming more than she'd anticipated and the sooner she was able to settle things with the Lieutenant Colonel, the faster she'd be able to get out of this place and back to her plain, boring life.

"I'm glad I caught you before you left. You see next Friday I'd lined up Stella Ronald to sing, but she was forced to cancel on me. You did an amazing job out there tonight…could you possibly fill in for her on Friday?"

What was with people tonight and asking her favors? She was beginning to feel a little like a soccer mom that'd promised to bake cookies for the entire district. Still, being asked to fill in with someone as well-known as Stella Ronald was flattering. She couldn't help but be a little taken back, after all Stella Ronald was her favorite singer. "I don't know what to say…"

"Say you'll do it." Mayhal said unexpectedly, for a moment Riza had almost forgotten he was there. Both the manager and Riza looked at him.

"It'll be perfect," he continued. "The goldfish will have an act for Friday night and you can sing for Gabriella at the same time!"

Riza continued to stare at him. "I'll pay you," the manager offered, trying hard to convince her. "You'll get $700."

Riza turned to stare at him, her eyes widened. '$700 for singing?' It was an insane amount of money for just singing a few songs.

"Please." The two men said in sync.

Riza couldn't say no "…All right." She responded, still a little shocked.

"Wonderful!" the manager said, "I'll start making the promotion posters immediately! …What's your name Miss?"

"No names." She said firmly. "I want to remain anonymous."

"Then what am I supposed to put on the posters?" he asked.

The three sat for a moment, trying to think of some solution. It didn't occur to them until Hughes glanced down at Riza's little red dress. He snapped his fingers in enlightenment. "You could use a stage name! You could call yourself, 'The Angel in Red.'" Riza and the manager both smiled.

"Perfect," the little man said, "I'll start making the posters immediately. Just be sure to wear the same dress on Friday," he told Riza. He turned to walk away, but he stopped for a moment and snapped his fingers as if he just remembered something. He turned to her and said, "I'll need you to come back every night this week. We need to choose some songs and do some sound checks. I want to make sure that this show is a smash."

Riza only nodded…this whole business, 'The Angel in Red', excited her. This was just what she'd been waiting for lately, she needed a break from the norm—and boy was she getting a break! Not only was she getting a break from the office and military, but she was getting a break from herself.

Riza's mood greatly improved over the next week. She was seen smiling and humming little tunes under her breath. David couldn't help but smile at her. Her mood was practically contagious. The entire office seemed bright and energetic. David couldn't remember the last time she was so happy. It was on Friday that he finally couldn't help himself.

"What's got you so happy?" he asked with a smile to his Lieutenant.

She smiled happily at her little secret. "Oh, nothing."

He gave her a sly smirk. "Well that must be some fantastic kind of nothing. You sure you don't have a date or something?"

"The only date I have is with a little red dress." She said mysteriously.

David raised an eyebrow at her comment, but decided against pushing her for details. 'There's no need to pry.' he thought, 'Not when she's this happy.' Her remark played back through his head, 'The only date I have is with a little red dress.' He smiled uncontrollably. 'I bet she'd look pretty hot in a-' he stopped before he allowed himself to finish the thought. 'No, I can't think of her like that. If I start thinking of Humphrey as more than just a soldier…things could get messy—not like I'd actually fall for a girl like her…so stiff and all, but damn, she'd look hot in—STOP that!'

He tried to get back to his work, but the more David tried to not think about her in a little red dress, the more he thought about it. Eventually he found himself giving into to a few of the fantasies and actually considering not just how good she'd look, but actually what the dresses looked like and what they'd look like on her. After a while he even started to wonder where she was going in those dresses, first it was places like the movies and clubs, but eventually it became lavish ballrooms. Then the fantasies took on a life of their own and not only was his fantasy-Riza dressing like she never would in work and going places he couldn't usually picture her going, but now she had a date on her arm…and it just wasn't anyone—it was him. Suddenly he was jarred out of his reveries with a hand on his shoulder.

"Sir?" He couldn't help but jump a little when he saw that it was Humphrey speaking. "You were murmuring." She said. "Did you need something?"

He shook his head quickly, "No! I was just thinking."

He felt his cheeks flush. It was embarrassing enough to be having fantasies about one of his subordinates, but it was even worse being caught by the one he was thinking about. He felt his body burn…especially his shoulder. He felt as if he were about to blush out into a fever.

"All right." She said simply and went back to her desk.

He turned back to look at his paperwork, but his mind continued to wander. This time, he made sure it was far away from the fantasy-Riza's he'd cooked up. He glanced at the clock, 6:00. 'Only an hour before me and Mayhal hit the town.' Tonight was going to be their night out, and David was looking forward to it. It felt like it'd been weeks since he'd seen his friend and he was anxious to play catch-up. David glanced over at Riza happily filling out paperwork at her desk. David also wanted to ask Mayhal if he knew anything about Lieutenant Humphrey's strange change of disposition…if anyone would know about her reasons, Mayhal would. He wasn't in intelligence for nothing.

"Hey Dave!" Mayhal said as he stuck his head inside David's office. "I'm going have to cancel on you tonight."

"Why?" David asked getting slightly annoyed. This was the second time in two weeks. This really wasn't like Mayhal.

"I've got a date with an angel in red." He said with a wink. With that said he walked quickly on his way down the hall.

David rushed to the door in attempts to get a real answer out of his friend before he left. "I thought your anniversary was next week!" he called down the hall.

"It is." Mayhal replied back mysteriously.

This was about all David could stand. Suddenly Mayhal's words echo in his head, 'I've got a date with an angel in red…' Riza's words followed after, 'The only date I have is with a little red dress' These couldn't be just a normal coincidence, could they? 'First Humphrey makes a mention of a little red dress,' David thought, 'then Mayhal cancels on me for the second week in a row for some "Angel in Red"? This is more than a coincidence' he deduced, 'Time for a little investigation.'


	2. Chapter 2 Hazel eyes

Chapter 2- hazel eyes

Mayhal wasn't that hard to follow. It was about 7:30 by the time Mayhal was finally able to leave the office. David followed him to a local club, The goldfish. Mayhal sauntered inside and sat at a table close to the stage. David hung back. He didn't want Hugh to see he'd been followed. David stood at the back wall, just inside the shadows. Part of him felt absolutely ridiculous, 'What am I doing? I mean…this is Mayhal. Am I really supposed to believe that he of all people could be cheating on his wife? And with MY subordinate no less.'

While he felt doubtful, they're comments were just too coincidental for his liking. Something about it being Riza annoyed him even more. He knew that the idea seemed strange, but somehow he just couldn't get himself to leave…maybe it was all that daydreaming about those fantasy-Riza's of his, but he just couldn't help but feel a little over protective of Humphrey today.

After about fifteen minutes of waiting Gabby and Emmalye walked in. David couldn't help but feel a little relieved. A small part of him had really been convinced that Hugh was cheating on his wife…it really wasn't Mayhal's style, 'but still his comment was a little misleading.'

As Gabby and Emmalye walked by David overheard Gabby say "Let's see what Daddy's big surprise is!"

Hunter couldn't help but notice that neither of them were wearing red…'What could he have meant?' David thought to himself. A few more people drifted in and he caught a few snippets of their conversation.

"Oh I heard she's got a voice like an angel!...no name…just calls herself The Angel in Red!"

David smiled 'How could I have been so stupid? There was no secret rendezvous, just a show…' The wheels in Hunter's head began to turn, 'Riza mentioned the red dress too…I wonder if she could possibly be here too…' something about that possibility made his spirits lift. He quickly scanned the room. Mostly just couples. David felt his mood fall a bit. 'Well…I don't want to ruin Mayhal's dinner date…I should probably leave…' David thought as he started toward the door. Suddenly the lights went out and the room was cast in total darkness. 'Well so much for that plan.'

The spotlight turned on, highlighting a little round, bald man on stage. "Ladies and Gents! I'd like to welcome you to The goldfish. Now tonight we've got a real treat for you. A few of you heard her last week and now she's back for an encore—that dirty blonde bombshell, that vivacious vixen—The Angel in Red!"

The audience applauded wildly as the lights flashed out for a moment. The spotlight came back on and standing in the manager's former place was someone David could only describe as 'one hell of a knockout'. "Damn." He said under his breath. "Dirty Blonde bombshell is an understatement!"

The music began to play and woman took the microphone from the stand. The woman smiled out into the crowd as she started to sing.

"oh, no oh oh

There's a place that I know

It's not pretty there and few have ever gone

If I show it to you now

will it make you run away

or will you stay even if it hurts

even if I try to push you out

will you return and remind me who I really am

Riza really enjoyed this song. It was a lot of fun to sing…and she really felt that the song fit her situation. She knew that "The Angel in Red" wasn't really real. She knew that after tonight she'd have to go back to her military life, but for a little while these people—this audience, believed that she was "The Angel in Red", and for tonight she was.

Everybody's got a dark side

Do you love me, can you love mine

Nobody's picture perfect but we're worth it

You know that we're worth it

Will you love me, even with my dark side

David couldn't take his eyes off her, she looked amazing…beautiful. 'Who is she?' He wondered. He felt like he knew her somehow…'but that's impossible. If I knew her, I'd know!' she smiled as if she heard his thought. 'I have to meet her.'

Like a diamond from black dust

It's hard to know it can become

A few give up so please don't give up on me

Please remind me who I really am.

She ended the song with a smile. The lights shown on her brightly and it was hard to see anyone in the audience. The only people she could make out in the crowd were the people at the tables closest to the stage. She smiled as she noticed Mayhal and his family right up front.

When the audience had finished clapping and the room was quiet again the woman spoke out in a voice all too familiar to David.

"All right everyone, I'm going to bring things down a notch or two before dinner with a song that's really close to my heart." She smiled.

'The Hawk?' David thought wildly. He squinted at the stage…'No!...it couldn't be…there's no way my 1st Lieutenant is actually on stage, singing to a crowd of people!' But the more he looked at her the more she looked like Riza…a more relaxed Riza…a Riza that he'd like to get to know more closely. 'She was right about one thing' he thought. 'It is a deceiving world. Just as fake and tricky as it can be!'

The next song started. The song had a slow tempo, and was primarily piano. A sad expression played about Riza's face as she started to sing.

Grew up in a small town

when the rain would fall down I would stare out my window

dreaming of what could be and if I'd end up happy

I would pray….

Trying hard to reach out

But when I would speak out

Felt like no one could hear me

Wanted to belong here

But something felt so wrong here

So I prayed I could breakaway

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

Riza's mood began to drop as she started singing. This song was more personal that the last. She hadn't originally wanted to sing it, but the manager had pushed her to. This song played her emotions like piano keys. The more she sang, the more she wished a certain someone was listening.

Seems just like yesterday you were a part of me

I used to stand so tall

I used to be so strong

Your arms around me tight everything it felt so right

Unbreakable like nothing could go wrong

Now, I can't breathe no, I can't sleep

I'm barely hanging on

Here I am once again I'm torn into pieces

Riza watched him day in and day out, giving him everything he needed, but she couldn't help but want, couldn't help but wish, that he'd give her something in return…more than a sly smirk. More than just a few kind words here and there.

She never asked for much, but some days she wished David would look at her more than just a soldier…the song was beginning to get to her. Her throat tightened and she forced herself to look at the back of the room, it was easier to sing if she didn't have to see Mayhal's face. 'I wonder if he knows why this song is close to my heart…' she wondered absentmindedly.

Can't deny it, can't pretend

Just thought you were the one

Broken up deep inside

But you won't get to see the tears I cry

Behind these hazel eyes

I told you everything opened up and let you in

You mad deme feel alright for once in my life

Now all that's left of me is what I pretend to be

So together, but broken up inside

Cause, I can't breathe no, I can't sleep

I'm barely hanging on

David froze where he stood. Riza was staring holes through him. He felt like she was singing to him. 'Is that how she really feels?' he asked himself, 'Have I really been so blind to her?' Suddenly his more rational side took over, 'No. This is only a song…nothing more.' He thought trying to convince himself, but something in her voice made him think there was more to this ordeal than he realized.

A short bridge in the music began and Riza couldn't resist looking at Mayhal any longer. She glanced down at her friend. His eyes burned with understanding. Within one moment their eyes made a silent exchange.

'You won't tell him will you?' Her eyes asked.

'Your secret's safe with me.' He replied. A small smile played on her lips as she started into the final stanza.

You won't get to see the tears

I cry

Behind..

These…

Hazel…

Eyes…

The song ended and the lights dimmed and just like that she was gone. David's eyes searched furiously in the dark. 'It can't be over!' he screamed inside his head. He was just beginning to really love seeing her like this.

The lights came back up and the manager appeared on stage. "All right Ladies and Gents we're stopping for a little while so some of you can get some food—but don't worry The Angel in Red will be back within the hour." He gave the audience a quick wink and trotted off stage.

David wandered over to the bar. His emotions were a jumble. 'The world has gone completely mad.' He thought to himself. 'My Lieutenant has suddenly become the most beautiful woman I've ever seen, and not only did I not know that she could sing, I wasn't even invited!'

"What's troubling you, friend?" The bartender said to David.

David looked up at the barkeeper. The Colonel glanced at the man's name tag, it read 'Liam'. "Well 'Liam'" he started. "I've just realized that the most beautiful woman in the world has been in the palm of my hand the whole time."

"So you know The Angel in Red personally, huh?" he responded

David's mouth hung open, "How'd you know I was talking about her?"

Liam gave him a sly smile. "Sir, I've seen a lot of broads in my day…in fact I've seen some drop dead gorgeous dames, but I've never seen anyone like her. Day in and day out I listen to men tell me about the women they love, and the women they hate, and if there's two things I know about, it's men and women. Besides, the way you were staring at her on stage, it doesn't take a genius to know who you're talking about."

David blushed slightly, "I wish I knew something about all this. Until she walked on stage, I didn't even know she could sing."

"Boy can she sing though. I've been working overtime all week just so I could see her. I even got to talk to her a bit."

David's head perked up, "What'd she say?"

"Usually 'No'." he said.

"No?" David questioned.

"Yeah, 'No, I don't want a drink.', 'No, I don't want to go out with you.', 'No, I don't want to tell you my name.'" Liam filled in. "I kept asking her out and she kept turning me down."

David was inwardly relieved. This man seemed fairly nice, but now that he was seeing this side of Riza he wasn't too sure he was willing to let go. "Did she ever give a reason?"

Liam put on that sly smile again, "I did ask her one day, if she had a guy, or if she just wasn't interested. She smiled at me and said, 'Liam, I could only hope to call him mine…but I'm sorry to say that he probably doesn't even notice I'm a woman. I'd probably have to walk into work in a freaking mini-skirt before he knew I was there.'"

David couldn't speak…maybe it wasn't just a song after all.

Liam continued, "She was talking about you wasn't she?"

David struggled to play the remark off casually.

He leaned back on the stool, "I wouldn't know…she doesn't really talk at all around the office. It's crazy you know. I can't hardly get her to say a word at work…but she gets here and sings like a canary on stage in front of 60 people." David paused for a moment. "How is it that I had the most beautiful woman in the world in the palm of my hand and I never saw her?"

"People often have trouble seeing what's in front of their faces. You know what they say, you can't see the forest because of all the trees. All I can say is that if I had a woman like that 'just sitting in the palm of my hand', I'd close my hand. Only a dumb-ass would let someone like that get away." Liam noticed another customer at the end of the bar and walked over to help him.

David thought about what the man had said. Would he really be a dumb-ass to let her go? If that was true—how do you catch someone like Humphrey?

Riza was on fire. She felt her skin was boiling from the hot lights. It was much cooler backstage. A stage hand brought her a glass of water.

"Thank you" she said to him.

He simply bowed and went on about his business. She looked up from her water to see the manager rushing over to her. "They're eating your act up!"

She smiled. "I'm glad."

"Just some friendly advice sweet cheeks, for your next number…I'd like you to move around more."

"But I moved around in my first two—"

"I know, I know, but for 'a thousand miles' I'd really like you to really move. You know, get out into the crowd—really spice things up."

"But we never practiced—"

"Don't worry about practicing, just roll with the punches baby doll." He said reassuring her. She nodded uncertainly, and butterflies appeared in her stomach. "Great," he replied, smiling "You're on in 10. Knock 'em dead gorgeous.'

The lights went out and the crowd cheered loudly in anticipation. David took his place at the back of the room. Somewhere in the dark Riza's voice rang out loud and clear,

"This next number is for someone really special…you know who you are." David's face flushed…could she be talking to him?

At the front of the room Mayhal put his arm around his wife and whispered in her ear. "This is for you."

A light came on behind the curtain, creating a silhouette of the woman on stage. The silhouette began to snap her fingers and music started to accompany her. The lights gently faded on and she started to sing.

Making my way downtown

Walking fast faces pass

And I'm homebound

Staring blankly ahead just making my way

She was just as stunning the second time. Her voice was seductive, sexy. He felt like she was singing straight to him, and as far as he knew, she was. The whole thing left him breathless.

Making my way through the crowd

And I need you, and I miss you Now, I wonder

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just to see you

Tonight." Riza could feel her confidence growing, and it showed. The manager had clipped a small cordless microphone to the top of her strapless dress, in place of the large microphone. This way she was free to move around the crowd. She started to move down the side stairs and into the crowd.

It's always times like these

When I think of you and wonder

If you ever think of me

Cause everything's so wrong

And I don't belong living in your precious memories

'It's true' Hunter realized…everything she was saying was true. She really did light up when he was around. This entire show seemed aimed at him, but how did she even know he was here? He wasn't invited to this little shindig. Suddenly the "truth" dawned on him. 'They planned this all along!' He thought 'Mayhal, Riza, Liam—this was all a set up! They wanted me to follow Hugh here, they wanted me to see this show! This was all a plan to let her tell me how she feels without actually telling me!' He smiled devilishly, everything suddenly made sense.

Cause I need you and I miss you and now I wonder…

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand mile

If I could just see you

Tonight" She sang as she made her way through the crowd toward Hugh, Gabby and Emmalye. The crowd loved it. Most of them were snapping their fingers. Riza couldn't help but smile. She felt on top of the world.

And I,I don't want to let you know. she sang, as she circled Gabby and Emmalye. "I,I drown in your memory" she sang a few words to Mayhal and began working her way to the back. "I,I don't want to let this go"

I,I don't" she was about halfway to where David was standing when she started into the next stanza, "making my way downtown, walking fast faces pass and I'm homebound"

Staring blankly ahead just making my way" she sang to a young couple. She was barely three feet away from David and she didn't even know it. The spotlight had been following her this whole time and it was hard to see anyone that was outside the circle of light.

She walked backwards a few steps away from the couple and continued singing. "making my way through the crowd—" Riza was surprised to have walked backwards into something—well, not something exactly…more like someone. The word "fire" had time to slip out of her mouth as she turned around to face none other than the Fire Scientist.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3-

Riza was surprised to have walked backwards into something—well, not something exactly…more like someone. The word "fire" had time to slip out of her mouth as she turned around to face none other than the fire scientist.

In that moment, Riza's entire world had time to collapse in on itself, and rebuild itself back up from scratch. For a moment, she almost screamed, but she caught herself just in time. Her rational side took over, 'Remain calm. You're still the Angel in Red, and you have a job to do.' She told herself inwardly. She listened to the music, she'd only lost a few beats in her song, and if she timed it right no one would noticed she had to drop a few lines. She began singing again, straight to Roy.

And I still miss you

And now I wonder…

If I could fall into the sky

No one in the crowd even noticed her pause…well almost no one. When Riza had turned to see David, he suddenly realized how wrong he'd been. No one had planned this for him…he wasn't even supposed to be there. He could see it now. When she'd turned around he gave her his trademark smirk, but the look in her eyes quickly wiped it off his face. Her eyes shrieked out in surprise, and now that she'd started singing again they were staring daggers at him. 'If looks could kill…' he thought.

She continued to sing to him, her eyes filling with hatred and embarrassment, and he was the only one that could see it. Everyone else in the room assumed her bumping into the man and singing to him was part of the act.

Do you think time would pass us by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

If I could just see you…

If I could fall into the sky

Do you think time would pass me by

Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles

if I could just see you

if I could just hold you" As she sang to her colonel she began circling him. Her odium and mortification burned stronger with every pass. This was her last stanza; she wanted to do something to make him feel as stupid as he made her feel. An idea sparked in her head. She stopped circling him and turned to face him. She set her eyes on him and slowly and seductively walked toward him. If David didn't know better, he would have thought that she was going to kiss him…but the remembrance of those eyes—so angry, he knew that couldn't be her plan. She was still walking towards him, never missing a beat, "tonight,

I'd walk a thousand". She was within a hair's breadth of him. Suddenly she turned her back to him, and leaned her body against his. He could smell her scent and feel her hand searching for his, "miles just to see you" she continued to sing. She found his hand and guided it down the side of her stomach to her hips. "Making my way downtown walking fast faces pass." David could feel himself blush, and he knew his nose was going to start bleeding any second. Her body felt so good in his arms, he couldn't believe he was holding her—or that she was actually encouraging him to hold her. A fleeting thought passed through his memory, 'There's gotta be something wrong…she'd never let me do this.' Oh how right he was.

"and I'm homebound" she continued as she turned to face him, her body pressed forcefully against his. "Staring blankly ahead." She pulled his collar making his face come closer to hers. He could feel her breath on his lips, as she kept singing, "just making my way". Suddenly she let go of him, and paused just before she finished the song "just making my way through the crowd".

Riza's eyes once again filled with hatred as she shoved him away from her as she said the word 'Crowd'. He was off balance, and hadn't been expecting it. Naturally he fell right on his ass in front of everyone. The room filled with applause—everyone else just assumed it was part of the show.

As the lights blinked out, Riza made a run for it. She quickly disappeared backstage leaving David still sitting on the floor, not quite sure about what had happened. As quickly as possible she collected her coat and walked out the back door. The house lights came up and everyone started talking at once, most were making comments about how amazing that last number was. Mayhal jumped up from his seat and rushed over to David who'd just stood up.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked.

"Well apparently I'm getting knocked on my ass." Hunter replied annoyed.

"Don't be a smart ass. What did you think you were doing?" Hugh said.

"I thought I was making sure you weren't cheating on your wife. That is until my Lieutenant walked on stage. Why didn't you tell me she could sing?"

"Why didn't I tell you? I didn't tell you because I knew she'd put a hole through my head if I did!" Suddenly it dawned on Mayhal, "Oh God, she's going to think I told you. Oh my God! She's going to shoot me. I promised her you wouldn't come and now you're here and she knows-"

"Stop it!" Hunter said, interrupting Mayhal's panic attack. "Just take a deep breath. We'll figure a way out of this."

"Yeah…you're right. Maybe it won't be so bad…besides, she didn't look too mad." Mayhal said, beginning to feel a little better.

"She might not have looked too mad from your end, but from where I was standing she wasn't too happy at all."

As Riza left through the back door a blast of cold air hit her. She shivered in the night and Goosebumps covered her bare legs. She tried to walk quickly back to her apartment. Every step made her hate herself even more.

'What the hell was I thinking? I should have just stayed home. Angel in Red…I've got to be the biggest dumb-ass in the world. And what's worse is that I paraded my freak show in front my superior. With Hunter's motor mouth my little demonstration will be front page news before 6 am.' Riza's eyes burned.

"No one will take me seriously again." She said to herself. Suddenly her Angel in Red self-began to wear off and the Lieutenant Humphrey in her came back to the forefront. 'It's not totally my fault. Mayhal must have told Hunter about this little show. If it weren't for the two of them I wouldn't have this problem.' Her anger at the two of them burned. 'They'll pay for making me look like an ass.'

It was good that Riza's little show was on Friday, it gave Mayhal and Hunter a few days to scheme a way to keep her from shooting them on sight. Humphrey was a proud person, and something like this was more than an injury to her pride…it was personal. This couldn't be fixed with a little 'I'm sorry'. This needed more…

"I don't know about this Mayhal…" David said uncertainly. The plan they'd worked out was pretty good, but there was humiliation involved and he wasn't too sure he wanted to participate. Particularly because it involved humiliating himself.

"Look, if you want to make this up to her it's going to take a lot more than an little apology, besides Gabriella said that'd it'd work." Mayhal said trying to help convince his friend.

"Wait, you said that this was your plan."

Mayhal shrugged, "My plan, her plan, whatever. As long as it works, who cares?"

Hunter threw his friend an unsure look. "All right. What do we have to do first?"

Mayhal smiled. "Well we know that The Hawk left without being paid, so she'll want the money…especially after Sayate suddenly needs surgery that will incidentally cost exactly $700."

"But I don't want to hurt Sayate-"

"Don't worry Dave, we won't. We're just going to give him a little something to get him to throw up a bit. I've already worked it out with my friend over at the vet's office. When she brings Sayate in, the vet will just tell her that he needs surgery. After that she'll have no choice but to go back to the club and get the money."

"What are we going to give him?" Hunter asked.

"You leave that to me. I'll make sure she gets where she needs to be, when she needs to be there. You just make sure you rest those pipes, my little canary." Mayhal said with a wink. Hunter could feel it already…this was going to be a long week.

Monday morning rolled around and the entire office was more quiet than usual. Humphrey could only imagine it was because they were all laughing at her behind her back. She wasn't usually this paranoid, but humiliation can do that to a person.

David walked in a few minutes late. Usually she would have scolded him, but she refused to even look at him. David looked at Humphrey in the silence. Even with her brow furrowed and her negative mood radiating into the room, he still couldn't help but admire her.

She was beautiful. 'Why didn't I see it before?' he wondered again. It was something he'd been asking himself a lot over the past few days…ever since he'd heard her sing. Now every time he saw her, he wasn't seeing just a soldier, he saw a woman that was beautiful and capable of killing someone.

Every time he looked at her, no matter what horrible stare she was throwing him, he couldn't help but smile as he thought back to that night when he got to see a real fantasy Riza. As much as he hated to admit it, he was falling for her…which was one more reason that he had to make her forgive him for this whole mess.

She wished he wouldn't stare at her like that. That retarded smile made it hard for her to hate him. Usually she would have just thought that he was mocking her, but something behind that smile made him look so retarded she just couldn't hate him. 'I sound like one of those bimbos he dates falling for that stupid smirk.' The thought only made her hate herself even more. It continued that way all day.

She refused to look at him, and only obeyed his orders if they could be carried out without speaking to him. Finally around 4:00 Hunter couldn't stand it anymore. He chose his time wisely, making sure everyone was gone.

"I didn't tell anyone." He said, breaking the silence.

'Sure you didn't.' she replied in her head, 'you didn't tell just anyone, you probably told every damn person you know!'

"Come on Humphrey…talk to me." He said. He wasn't quite pleading, he was still a little too proud for that. He threw her one of his trademark smirks, "You know you want to."

Humphrey looked up at him. There was no mistaking what she was thinking, 'DROP DEAD.'

David backed off a bit. He'd pushed her a little too far with that last remark. He quickly tried to make up for it. "I thought you did really well. I liked your last song the best." She continued to ignore him and pretended to read a report. "A thousand miles has always been one of my favorite songs." When she didn't look at him, or pull out her gun, or anything, he gave up. There really was only one way to make this up to her…

The week dragged on and eventually everyone began to notice the tension between the colonel and his lieutenant. Storm and Michaels made a few bets on what they were fighting about.

Bryce on the other hand actually tried to patch things up between the two. 'Flowers will fix just about anything.' He thought as he laid a rose on Humphrey's desk Friday morning.

Humphrey strolled in moments later. Her heart jumped as she saw the rose laying on her desk. Cautiously, she walked over to it and opened the card that Bryce had tied to the rose. It was short and sweet and to the point.

"Rizzianna, I'm sorry. For everything. Please forgive me.

David"

The last few days had been fairly calm and she was actually beginning to forgive David and Hugh. It didn't seem as if they'd actually told anyone, but she couldn't help but narrow her eyes at the words in the note.

'David, asking for forgiveness? That's not his style.' Annoyed she threw the rose and the note in the trash. 'David wouldn't ask forgiveness from God!' Unfortunately for David, he took just that moment to walk in. Still irritated, Riza couldn't keep her silence any longer.

"You know, it would have been more effective if you were actually being sincere!" she said meaning the rose and the letter.

"I was being sincere!" David said, completely taken off guard. Naturally he thought she was talking about their conversation on Monday.

"Ugh! You make me sick. You think you can throw around that stupid charm, and a few roses and you think everything will be all better. Think again. I'm not like your little girlfriends. I don't fall for that fake bullshit you like to spread around. And really if you think about it you're a F*cked up man!" Riza said, completely losing her cool. She couldn't remember the last time she'd broken ranks so forwardly. She was never like this, but just the fact that she was having to spend all day locked in an office with someone that had completely humiliated her—well it was finally starting to really take its toll. Especially considering it seemed that he wasn't even really sorry…she didn't need mockery right now. "Couldn't you just let it go?"

"Me let it go? Me? I wasn't the one that strolled in here kicking and screaming about being insincere!" Roy yelled back at her. 'What the hell is wrong with her?'

The whole team was in there and they were shocked that Riza had cursed and was yelling at the top of her lungs at the colonel.

Humphrey's eyes narrowed and her mouth pursed. "I'm taking the f*cking day off. If I have to spend one more moment in a room with you, I know I'll do something you'll regret." She said as she stormed out of the office. The door slammed soundly leaving the men stunned.

"What did you do?" Storm said directing everyone's attention to Hunter.

"Nothing!" David said, defending himself. "I haven't even said anything to her since Monday!"

Bryce uncomfortably shifted his weight from one foot to the other. Cautiously he cleared his throat. Everyone's eyes slowly turned to him. "Bryce?" David said warily.

"Flowers will fix just about anything…?" Bryce offered guiltily. "I was trying to help."

"I think you just helped me right into my grave." David said massaging his temples. Silently David tried to reassure himself. 'Don't worry, you've still got an ace up your sleeve…hopefully.'

Riza slammed the door to her house so hard the candle sticks on the table shook.

"UGH!" she raged. "Damn it I hate that man! First they humiliate me and then he tries to make it up to me with-with mock fl-flattery and a l-lame note!" She was so mad she was stuttering.

This entire thing had been a major blow to her pride and everything Hunter did just seemed to kick her when she was down. Her anger was actually helping one person in the situation, and that was Mayhal.

He'd chosen this morning to give Sayate something to make him throw up…he didn't think that Humphrey would be back so early in the day. Lucky for him she was so angry when she got home she didn't notice him sneaking out her back door. While she'd interrupted him, Mayhal had been able to give just enough of the concoction to Sayate that his plan would still work.

Riza collapsed on her couch in a lump. Hatred could take a lot out of a person. She couldn't remember the last time she'd taken a day off and now she didn't really know what to do with herself.

She laid there for a little while, but after a time she noticed something was wrong. Sayate was usually the first thing she saw when she walked in the door, and she'd been home for nearly 30 minutes and she hadn't seen him once.

It was then that she noticed the noise. It was sort of a gurgling, whining sound. Cautiously Riza pulled out one of her guns and cocked it as she got off the couch. The noise seemed to be coming from the kitchen.

She thrust open the door and burst into the room to find, not an intruder, but her dog. Sayate was lying on his side trembling and whimpering. Immediately she put away her gun and tended to her pet.

"What's wrong?" she asked as she stroked the animal's brow, "You okay boy?" Her only answer was a hacking sound and a good amount of doggie puke right into her open hand.

'Ahh! She shouted. Great. This day just keeps getting better.' she thought bitterly. Riza wiped some of the substance off her hand and went to fetch the doggie carrier. It looked like she was going to have a busier day off than she thought.

"What is it? What's wrong with him?" Humphrey asked, concern flowing into her voice. She wasn't usually emotional, but Sayate was one of the few people-err things that she was close to, and she couldn't help but feel a little worried.

"Well," the vet said removing his gloves, "I'm sorry to say it's quite serious. Your dog has contracted a very rare virus called Mon-nun."

Riza raised an eyebrow, "Mon-nun? That doesn't sound like any kind of disease I've heard of-"

"I said it was rare." The vet said, annoyance slipping into his voice.

"But that doesn't really sound like-"

"Who's the vet here? You or me? I say its Mon-nun, and its Mon-nun."

Riza backed off a bit, "Ok, ok. What do I need to do?"

"Well there's not much you can do. I mean we can perform a surgery that'll clear it right up…but it'll cost a good bit." The vet said.

Riza started to have doubts. She didn't have that much money to throw around and she knew that just this visit was going to cost more than she could afford. "How much?"

"$700."

Riza's heart dropped. She didn't have that kind of money, and she wasn't getting paid for another few weeks. She pinched the bridge of her nose as she tried to come up with a way to make the payment. 'Maybe he'll let me do it in installments…' "Is there a way I could pay that on some sort of payment plan?"

"I don't think so." The vet said. 'Mayhal owes me big for this.' He thought to himself. 'Mon-nun…HA! I can't believe this woman believes me. I must be one hell of an actor.'

"What'll happen if he doesn't get the surgery?" She asked tentatively.

"It'll be terminal." The vet said, he fought to keep himself from smiling.

A lump formed at the back of her throat, the thought of losing Sayate was devastating. He was always there for her, a kind ear when she needed one…he was a friend that didn't ask for more than a scratch behind the ears and a bowl of food. "I'll get you the money. I'm not sure how, but I'll find a way."

"All right." He replied, "I'll keep your dog here until we can get him ready for surgery."

"Okay." She said. She turned to leave, but she stopped short of the door. Riza looked back over her shoulder at her dog. He looked up at her with big brown eyes and she couldn't help but kiss him on top of his head and scratched him behind his ears before she left. "I'll be back soon boy."

"Where am I going to get $700?" she ask herself as she paced her living room. "I've only got $300 in savings and even with my paycheck in two weeks I still wouldn't be able to make up that kind of money." She continued to pace.

"I'm going to have to borrow from someone…" she said, the thought made her sick. "The only person I could really ask would be Hunter—and after that screaming match I gave him this morning there's no way he'd help me…" Riza couldn't help but feel like her back was against the wall. "Maybe Mayhal…" 'No! He's got a family to support. I couldn't possibly ask him to give me money.' "Then what am I going to do?" Just then there was a knock at the door.

Riza opened the door quickly, and was surprised to see that it was Mayhal on the other side. "What'd you want?" she said, not meaning to sound rude.

"I came by to drop off some paperwork." Mayhal said handing her a folder. "David was too afraid to do it himself." He finished smiling. He played it off with a smile but he was a little scared himself. He'd heard about what she'd done this morning and he wasn't totally sure she was in the mood to see him...especially because it could be seen as his fault for David seeing her show in the first place.

"Oh, thank you." She said off hand, her mind was still on Sayate.

"Something bothering you Lieutenant?" Mayhal asked. He could hardly keep the smile from his face. Of course he knew what was bothering her, he was the one that'd set it up, it was just a good thing she didn't know that.

"Sayate's sick." She said, she left out the money issues on purpose. Even if she was mad at Mayhal for what he'd done to her in the Goldfish she knew him well enough to know that if she mentioned her money troubles, he'd try to help.

"Oh, that's too bad. Is it serious?" Mayhal said, stringing her along. 'Come on Humphrey, give me an opening to remind you about the money.'

"Yes, I'm afraid so…he needs surgery."

"Oh that's too bad." Mayhal said, "Surgery can be pretty expensive, especially for pets."

"Yes, I know…$700." Riza said, looking at the floor.

"$700, huh? Wow, then I guess it's lucky that you got paid that much at the club last week." Mayhal filled in, 'I've got you right where I want you. This couldn't be going better if you were reading from a script.'

Riza's head perked up. "What'd you say?"

'Ok, look innocent Mayhal's he thought to himself, "I said 'I guess it's lucky that you got paid $700 last week at the club.' You know, when you sang."

Riza's eyes lit up. "Mayhal you're a genius!" she said as she grabbed her keys and shouldered by him to get out of the door.

"Whoa whoa! Where are you going?" he said, genuinely confused.

"To the club. I forgot to pick up my money last time and-"

"Now? You're going now?"

"Of course," she said, getting a little suspicious. "When else would I go?"

'Crap, she wasn't supposed to want to go now, she was supposed to wait! This isn't going according to plan!' "Uh…later! You should pick up the money later!"

"Why wait when I can go now?"

"You can't go now…you-you have p-paperwork. Yeah! Paperwork!" Mayhal stuttered out.

"I can do the paperwork later, I think my dog's life is a bit more important than making sure Hunter dotted all the 'i's and crossed all the 't's."

"Oh, right. Of course! Um, how about I drive you?" Mayhal said.

"Okay." Humphrey said. Mayhal was acting pretty weird, but if he was willing to give her a ride she wasn't one to turn it down.

Mayhal was acting rather cagey throughout the entire car ride, and he was driving unbelievably slow. Riza wasn't quite sure what was wrong with him but she was much more concerned about the welfare of her dog than what was going on with Mayhal. While Riza hadn't forgotten how he and Hunter had humiliated her she wasn't about to bring up how mad she was at him while he was doing her a favor.

They pulled up to the club around 5:30. Hunter wouldn't be out of work for another half hour and their plan wasn't supposed to take action until 6:00. 'How am I supposed to hold her off for another hour and a half?' Mayhal thought wildly. It occurred to him as they got out of the car and walked into the club. "Humphrey, you stay here and I'll go find the Manager." Mayhal said.

"Why can't we look together?" She asked.

"Why can't we-" Mayhal mumbled under his breath, "Because! Because you need to stay here and wait to-to see if the manager walks by! It'd just be silly if we were just walking in circles looking for him. If you stay here and I go look for him then we'll be twice as likely to find him!"

"Oh okaaayy." Riza said, a little freaked out by Mayhal's over protectiveness.

"Great! You stay there, and I'll go look for the manager." Mayhal said as he promptly walked off toward the stage door.

"We could just ask one of the waiters where he is." Riza mumbled to Mayhal's receding form.

Mayhal found the manager almost immediately. "We've got a problem." He said to the little round man. "She's here."

"What do you mean? You said you'd bring her by a little before 7:00." The manager countered.

"I know, but things got a little out of hand and she's here now."

"Well what do we do?" the manager asked wringing his hands.

"Look, she just wants the money. She doesn't know anything about the plan, so what I need you to do is to tell her that you don't have her money right now and that she'll have to wait until after tonight's show." Mayhal explained.

"But isn't she going to ask why I don't have her money?"

"Tell her that you-you put it in the bank already and you can't get it to her until tomorrow."

"But then won't she just come back tomorrow?" the manager ask blowing holes through Hugh's plan.

"Look, if it really was in the bank you wouldn't be able to get it until Monday anyway, so tell her that you'll give her the money you'll earn tonight. That way she'll have to come for it after the show." Mayhal said. With all their bases covered the two gentlemen came out front to see Riza chatting with Liam the bartender. "Does he know anything about the plan?" Hugh asked the manager out of the side of his mouth.

"Everything." The manager replied back.

"Let's hope your hired help is discreet."

"Lieutenant!" Hugh called out to her. "I found the manager."

Humphrey smiled at the small man as she shook his hand. "It's a bad break though," Mayhal continued. "It turns out that he doesn't have the money ready for you."

"Oh really." She said, interestingly enough she didn't appear surprised. "Why is that?"

"Oh, well sweet cheeks. After you ran off I went ahead and put that money in the bank. You know, I can't just carry around that kind of cash. But your friend here told me about your troubles and I decided the best plan was to just give you what we earn tonight as payment." The manager explained to her.

"That sounds fair." She said calmly. "I guess I'll just see you back here around closing time then." She finished as she started to get up and start toward the door.

"No!" the men said in sync.

"-err, what we mean is, why don't you stay for a while. You know, eat dinner…take in a show. You know to make up for this little mix up with the money." The manager said, beginning to sweat. He didn't like lying to military personnel. There was something about knowing they had a gun that bothered him.

"I guess that sounds all right." She said, being strangely cooperative now. Hugh raised an eyebrow at her behavior, but was unwilling to question it. As long as she was here at 7:00, he didn't care why.

7:00 finally rolled around and Mayhal invited his family over to The Goldfish for dinner. He wanted to make sure that Riza saw this show no matter what. The lights went down and the manager appeared on stage.

Riza looked over her shoulder from her chair next to Mayhal to Liam at the bar. He winked at her and smiled wide. She returned the smile and turned to watch the manager. All signs of the man's earlier nervousness were gone. Suddenly he was back in the circus, running the show.

The manager turned ringleader began his introduction, "Ladies and Gents, regulars and first timers! Some of you watch me up here week after week and usually I make the same intro. It usually starts off with a welcome and then I throw in something about tonight's amateur acts being the best in Cameron—though we all know they aren't" he said with a wink.

"But tonight, I don't bring you the usual amateurs. Tonight, we've got a very special act, for a very special lady. As some of you may know, I'm a romantic at heart, and when I heard about this I couldn't resist lending my stage to help the guy out. Please put your hands together for the one, the only, the Fire scientist!" The manager sidestepped off stage and David made his way on. He usual cocky grin played about his face. As he stepped up to the mic though, all cockiness slipped away. Riza was sitting in the table closest to the stage and she was the only thing he could see, the truth be told, the only thing he wanted to see.

"I've screwed up a lot in my life. I've done some things I'm not proud of, and I've gotten myself into some situations I shouldn't have. But through it all there was someone really special that stood by me. She smiled at my idiocies and knocked sense into me when I needed it the most. But most of all she's been there to keep me straight through it all, and I'm sorry to say that for years…I didn't notice. I didn't notice all the things she's done for me—all the things she does for me. It wasn't until last week that I really saw her not just for the friend she was, but for the woman she is. This entire week, she's ignored me and given me the cold shoulder. All I can say is that it's been killing me softly every day. I've done this woman a grave injustice and I believe there's only one way to make it right. So here's trading one humiliated ego for another." David said. Suddenly a slow band began to play softly in the background. He waited patiently for the intro to finish. When his cue came, his sweet baritone voice rang out,

"I heard she sang a good song, I heard she had a style.

And so I came to see her and listen for a while.

And there she was this young girl, a stranger to my eyes."

"Strumming my pain with her fingers,

singing my life with her words,

killing me softly with her song,

killing me softly with her song,

telling my whole life with her words,

killing me softly with her song" The words rang true…all of them, he'd just been too blind these past years to see it. The entire time he sang, he never took his eyes from her face.

"I felt all flushed with fever, embarrassed by the crowd," he felt himself blush a little remembering he was singing to more than just her.

"I felt she found my letters and read each one out loud.

I prayed that she would finish but she just kept right on." As he started into the chorus again Riza smiled a wide teary-eyed smile. She was never very emotional, but no one had ever done something like this for just her.

It was one of the best gifts she could have ever received…especially coming from him. She knew how much this had to be killing his pride, to stand on stage and not just admit that he was wrong, but to sing about it too!

"Strumming my pain with her fingers,

singing my life with her words,

killing me softly with her song,

killing me softly with her song,

telling my whole life with her words,

killing me softly with her song"

David put his heart and soul into the next stanza because it seemed to sing exactly what'd happened that first night in the club,

"She sang as if he knew me in all my dark despair

and then she looked right through me as if I wasn't there.

But she just came to singing, singing clear and strong."

Riza could feel his intense emotion through the words and she could feel her heart catch in her throat.

"Strumming my pain with her fingers,

singing my life with her words,

killing me softly with her song,

killing me softly with her song,

telling my whole life with her words,

killing me softly with her song" The last stanza had been sung and the music came slowly to a close. The spotlight turned off and David disappeared off stage. Riza sat spellbound in her seat.

A handkerchief was offered in front of her face and a familiar voice asked "So, are we forgiven?" Riza took the handkerchief and smiled at Mayhal as she dabbed the corner of her eyes.

"Yes, you're forgiven." She said. A little part of her didn't want to forgive them…on the bright side, if she never forgave them it meant they'd try little stunts like this all the time and seeing David humiliate himself was quite entertaining. Still smiling she stood up and handed the handkerchief back to Mayhal and made her way to the stage door.

It didn't take long to find him, he was putting on his coat and attempting to escape out the back door without being noticed. She followed him out the back and caught his arm as he was walking down the street. She hooked her elbow in his. Definitely a move that was more natural to her Angel in Red counterpart, but something about it felt right. David turned to see her on his arm and smiled wide. "Does this mean you forgive me?" he said, adding in his trademark smirk.

"Oh I don't know. Seeing you humiliate yourself once a week to try and get me to forgive you does sound enticing." She said, more of her Angel in Red traits flowing into her character. There was something liberating about having someone beg your forgiveness in song. It made her feel almost giddy…but that could have just been because she was so close to him. "I suppose I forgive you. It's kind of hard to stay mad at someone that serenaded you."

"I know what you mean." He said back to her. "Sometimes things come out better in song. Don't you think?"

She didn't say anything for a moment and just continued to walk with him arm and arm. After a little while she smiled and said, "Sam said that your rehearsals were murder."

David was a little stunned, he'd assumed that this whole thing had been kept a secret. "So much for being a surprise." He mumbled.

"Serves you two right for making Sayate sick."

"Yeah I suppose so." David said looking at her. There was something different about her. This wasn't the same Humphrey that he saw day in and day out in the office. She looked like the same woman…but it seemed that there was just a little of that Angel in Red still shining through her old mask.

"Regardless of Liam's opinion, I'd have to say that you really did well."

"You think so?" he said looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "I'm thinking about taking my show on the road, care to join me?"

Riza sighed happily, and snuggled closer to his arm in the cool breeze, "Don't mind if I do."

David walked her the rest of the way home, he knew that even with his serenade there was no chance of getting invited inside. She wasn't that type of woman, but maybe with time, and a few more serenades he'd make it beyond the front doorstep.

Looking at Riza in the dark he was just happy to see the smile on her face…it was even better because he knew she was smiling because of him. David, being the risk taker he was couldn't quite help himself and decided to try his luck. His arms remembered well what her slender form felt like. In a slow, but fluid motion he wrapped his arms around her and he said,

"So what am I going to have to do to keep you from telling the guys about my little performance back there?"

"I dunno, do you have a little serenade in there for that?" she asked slyly, his face inching closer to hers. She could feel his breath on her lips as he said, "I think I might be able to work something out…" his lips lightly brushed hers and she was too stunned to say or do anything. All the chill from the night air was gone, only a blushing fever remained. Before she knew it he was gone, walking down the street and throwing a goofy smile over his shoulder to her. She hadn't actually thought he'd be so forward—not with her, but something in her was glad he was.

She turned and went inside, muddling through her house as if in a dream. The restlessness was long gone. As she got ready for bed she glimpsed herself in the mirror. For some reason her reflection didn't seem quite the same…there was something different. It seemed that there was just a little of the Angel in Red still shining through her old mask. After looking a little longer she decided that it wasn't the Angel in Red…it was her. Riza smiled at her reflection, the Angel in Red hadn't been as make-believe as she'd originally liked to think. The more she looked at herself, the more she realized that the Angel in Red was a part of her, just as much as her soldier self was, or even her Angel with a sniper part of her, it was just that for once in her life, she was letting the Angel in Red out…'and maybe' Riza thought, 'that isn't such a bad thing.'


End file.
